"Race you there, Luffy!" she laughed, running on ahead toward the smoke.

"Rose! Wait up!" Luffy called. He was out of breath. "Come on, Rose! We can see what the smoke is coming from if we walk!" He turned the corner. She was ahead of him. She was the fastest runner in the village. However, her swimming ability didn't amount to much. "Rose! Come on! Slow down!" He sprinted. "Ummph!" Luffy ran into her and fell onto the dirt road. For some reason, she had stopped. Luffy peered around her knees and gasped. The smoke was coming from her house! Rose had a blank look on her face. He got up slowly. There was no way that anyone could have stopped the fire, not even if the entire village helped. Suddenly, she started moving toward the house. "Rose!" He called. "Get back here!" But she kept running. She went through the doorway right before the front of the house collapsed. "ROSE!!" He screamed. "ROSE!!!!"

"Luffy... Luffy...WAKE UP LUFFY!"

Luffy jumped. He hit his head on the ceiling above his bunk.

"Owww," he turned around to see Zolo standing next to his bunk with an aggravated look on his face. "Zolo, what did you wake me up for?"

"Because you were screaming, Luffy!" he shook his head. "Next time you want to wake me up, make sure its a day I'm NOT going into town."

"I was screaming?" he asked, raising an eyebrow and scratching his head. "What about?"

"Something about Rhodes...or Rose, maybe?"

"Oh, yeah. Um, sorry Zolo."

"What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing. Just go back to bed, okay?" Zolo shrugged and left Luffy's room. He sighed and got back under the covers.

The next day, Luffy's crew was getting ready to drop anchor. Zolo was going into town to buy some supplies. Everyone in the crew was working...except for Luffy. He stood at the side of the ship, looking down at the ocean with an irritated frown on his face.

"What's with Luffy, Zolo?" Nami asked.

"Yeah, he seems kind of down. Usually he's so optimistic," Chopper added.

"And he only ate four eggs this morning," Sanji said.

"I don't know guys. Last night he had some dream, and he's been depressed ever since," Zolo muttered behind some weights he was lifting. "He kept yelling something about a Rose person. Woke me up in the middle of the night."

"I've never heard him mention a girl named Rose," Usopp spoke up.

"Land!" Nami called. Luffy looked up for a second.

"Ready to go, Zolo?" He called from the top deck.

"Yeah."

"Good." He went back to staring at the sea. The others glanced worryingly at him, then set Zolo down in a dinghy.

"Don't forget the apples!" Sanji shouted. They released the dinghy from the boat and Zolo rowed to the docks.

"Okay, what's on this list now," Zolo murmured. "Guess I better get Blondie's apples first." He looked around the market for a fruit stand. He found it by suddenly hearing a commotion.

"Thief! She's trying to steal my apples!" The vender yelled and pointed to a girl with bright red hair, who seemed to be steaming with anger.

"I did no such thing! I just paid you!"

"Then where's the money, girl?"

"Probably in your pocket, you cheapskate liar!" She said, glaring at him. Zolo was impressed by herr confidence. He also noticed weapon holders attached to your belt. They were the perfect size for blades, short dagger-like swords that were extremely powerful in the right hands.

"Wow, bladesmasters are rare," Zolo thought.

"Alright, folks, what seems to be the problem?" Zolo looked up to see some navy officers headed their way.

"This girl is a thief! And she looks like a filthy pirate, too!"

"Come to think of it, doesn't she look kind of familiar?" one of the navy men whispered to another.

"Look, I didn't steal your apples, okay? I paid you for them, but you're just trying to make more of a profit!"

"Wait a minute!" one of the officers said. "I think I have seen her before! Freeze, girl!" Guns pointed at her head. She hesitated.

"Should I...? Zolo thought. Then he stepped forward. "Yumi!" Everyone looked up. He went over and grasped the girl's hand. "I've been looking everywhere for you, Yumi!"

"Yumi?" she asked, puzzled. Then, noticing his penetrating stare, she knew to play along. "Oh, yeah! I've been looking for you, too!"

"You know this girl?" The officers asked.

"Sure, she's my little sister," He said. After the men had lowered their guns, Zolo turned to the fruit vender and tossed some coins down. "That should be enough to cover it, plus another bushel. Which I want, of course, the extra isn't charity." The vender mumbled and tossed him a sack of apples. "Thank you. Let's go, Yumi," he said, pulling her along so quickly she could barely keep up.

"Wait!" One of the navy men called. You and Zolo froze. "Are you the pirate hunter Roronoa Zolo?"

"Of course not," he stammered. At the same time, he thought, "Geez, word hasn't gotten around to here that I'm a pirate now? I guess that's a good thing."

"Oh…well, good day to you then." They walked away with the crowd.

"Thanks for the save," she said, sighing with relief. "That guy is a cheapskate, I'm surprised he hadn't thought of that sooner." She then paused and stared at him. "So, Roronoa Zolo, huh?" He jumped. "Relax, I know who you are. I've even met you in person before."

"You have?"

"Yeah, but you wouldn't remember. Thanks for the save."

"Whatever," he grumbled. "I didn't do it for you, I did it because I needed to buy things from that guy and you were in the way."

"Even so, I appreciate it." She grabbed her sack of apples and waved, running down the road. Zolo scratched his head, but continued shopping. After he had gotten all of the supplies, he returned to the boat and rowed back to the ship. He tugged on the ropes for the others to pull him back up and attached the dinghy to them. He waited, but nothing happened. So, he tugged on the ropes again. The dinghy slowly began to rise from the water.

"It took you guys long enough," he called from the boat, picking up bags. "Did lollipop boy distract you or something?"

"Sorry, your majesty," a deep voice answered. He dropped his sacks. Twenty strange men were on board. The crew was tied up, and Luffy was gagged.

"What's going on here!?" Zolo shouted. Then, everything went black. One of the men had hit him with the handle of his sword.

"Hey, guys, I'm back!" she called, stepping onto the deck. Bennet, an Old English sheepdog, ran up to greet her, but stopped suddenly. He growled, ran to the side of the ship, and barked up a storm. She slowly followed, confused. "What's gotten into...you..." She then spotted the flag that she had been searching for for three years. A flash of contempt shone in her eyes before they grew dim and cruel. "I've finally found you. Now you'll pay!"